Of Men and Uruks
by Arsacid
Summary: Talion learns from Ratbag that there's more to orcs than meets the eye. Story set in the part where the Bright Lord seeks to track down Ranger the olog and Bruz the Chopper down.


Night was falling fast over the dark land of Mordor, with black clouds already obscuring any available light and when darkness fell, illumination would be scarce, save for the fire pits that dotted the landscape. None of Varda's stars shone through the blanket of darkness that engulfed the land, held in by the jagged teeth-like mountains that formed Mordor's boundaries, unassailable by any force of the now reclusive Eldar or the hardiest Edain. The gray ash that rained over the land everyday gave it a bleak look, as if it were made of bones; the colour and stench of death were everywhere.

Talion had had enough of scouting for the day; when the last light faded, it would be dangerous to keep moving. Orcs, caragors, ghuls and other creatures would be afoot and he had no intention of fending them off alone and unaided, invulnerable to death though he may be.

"Ratbag, we stop here" he called out to the little orc sniffing about some ten feet away.

It had been a nightmare ever since that olog brute Bruz had betrayed him and stabbed him in the back, both figuratively and literally speaking, and proceeded to make life miserable for him by abducting his followers and leading them on chases and into ambushes. He'd gone on to kidnap Ratbag's pet olog Ranger, which the orc had so nostalgically named after him, and was leading them in a chase over the blasted land of Mordor to rescue him. Talion had a thousand excuses to abandon the chase and to punish Bruz his own way, but two things held him back; logic, which cautioned him that not assisting Ratbag would be interpreted as weakness by other orcs who'd lose all respect for him for allowing an unprovoked attack on him to go unpunished, which was especially dangerous given that Bruz had broken out of domination and there was no reason other orcs couldn't, and then there was sentiment, something Talion would have vehemently denied if asked and spent a great deal of time denying it to himself as well. He owed it to Ratbag for his assistance in slaying the Tower of Sauron and in securing himself a fortress in Mordor; he simply couldn't reward him by turning his back on him in need.

"No, Ranger; I ain't stopping till I get Ranger -MY Ranger- back, safe from that piece of shrakh Bruz. I'll go on and scout ahead; you settle down for the night and make yourself cozy, yeah?"

Talion could have snarled aloud; the fool of an orc was not only going to get himself killed, but would also potentially give them away. He calmed himself down, though; it was not the time to get ahead of himself. He walked over silently to Ratbag, who had his back to him, and gripping his shoulder, he turned him around and spoke quietly to him, bringing his face as close to the orc as decently possible.

"Do you want to see Ranger again, Ratbag?" he asked. The stunned orc nodded in silence. "So do as you're told and _**settle down**_!" he growled. That seemed to do it and Ratbag quietly walked over to the nearest fire-pit and slumped down beside it. They were out in the open with no cover, but it could not be helped; there was no shelter for miles around with steep cliffs on either side. The only encouragement was that this was a forgotten trail that they had come across by accessing a hidden path and there was no chance of being attacked while asleep by orcs, although that did not offer any safeguard against the beasts that roamed the wilds of Mordor.

He walked over to the fire-pit in silence and sat down across from Ratbag; he never could really bring himself to _like_ the orc, regardless of what services he'd rendered in the past. After all, Talion had been a Ranger trained to kill orcs that predated on the people of Ithilien. Orcs had a bestial way of life which was steeped in warfare and bloodshed. They would snap at each others' throats with just as soon and with as much mercy as they would show one of the Edain. Even other human nations that fought under the banner of Mordor despised them; it was no wonder at all, given the very obvious differences, even with those fallen men who served Sauron.

But again, something had been different about Ratbag. From the very beginning, he had offered to assist Talion, even if it did entail his own promotion in the ranks of Sauron's army. He had offered to help without any thought of betrayal, which was rare, given how Bruz had turned against them. If it hadn't been for Ratbag, Talion would have never been able to avenge the deaths of his wife and son by the Black Captains of Sauron. And then, there had been the fortress; Ratbag had assisted him and familiarized him with the strengths and weakness of the stronghold, the challenges and demands facing them and had kept things running smoothly as overlord. _What is so different about him?_ he mused, looking at the orc, who was gazing into the depths of the dancing fire, lost in a world of his own.  
"Ratbag, Ranger will be alright. Bruz won't dare hurt him as long as we're still hunting him down; he needs him as a bargaining chip and a honeypot for me to get to him. I'll save him before he comes to any harm" he promised.

Ratbag made a noise signifying that he understood, but said nothing, continuing to gaze into the fire. For long he was silent before he began to speak,  
"Ya know, Ranger, when I was born, I wasn't expected to survive, being weaker and smaller than other uruk runts. They told my mother to put me out of my misery, 'cause I'd never grow up to be as big and strong as the other uruks, as you can see, but a captain said he'd recruit me when I was of age and took me in as a scout when I was able to walk. I had a blood brother Ushnâk who served as his bodyguard and I was placed under him. One day, duties get shuffled and I was dispatched elsewhere while Ushnâk was sent at the head of a raiding party outside to attack an outpost of Rangers. Never came back and I was the first to be told about it. When I told my squaw about this, she said 'er only son was dead and when I reminded 'er that I was still alive, she told me that I'd been born dead to 'er. Never saw 'er again after that day. Then I met you and helping you, I soared up the ranks, rising for once and becoming _someone_ until the Tower got me. Of course, Ranger happened afterwards and I became overlord and you returned. Ranger, he fills that emptiness I feel that I felt since Ushnâk was lost. I've got to save him, Ranger; he's all I 'ave left."  
There was silence after that, unbroken but for the lonely howls of some beast far way.  
"I didn't know orcs felt that way too" Talion remarked.  
Ratbag chuckled dryly, eyes never leaving the fire. "We're not so different from you Men as you think, Ranger. Like you, we want to live, build and to leave behind our mark. I've heard stories of uruk legend about great ships and cities of Men that came from the West; we've got trophies too. Old swords, shields, armour, trinkets; all used by the most highly ranked uruk chieftains. We want to be like you and to build great things; but somehow, it never works out, does it? We're ugly and we know it, alright; even the men allied to Mordor hate us. We aren't able to learn fast either; by the time we learn to build something, menfolk are building something stronger and better. It's like a curse, see; like we were born to serve as beasts of war or somethin'. But you know what I want most of all, Ranger? I want our squaws to love their little runts, not just for how good they'd be in the army, but for their own sake, yeah. I don't know what's wrong with us; war, war and war, that's what it's always been for the uruks. Not many want to fight, but the will of _Lugbúrz_ drives us on and we're bound to serve the Dark Lord. But sometimes I wonder, why was fate so kind to men and cruel to us; what'd we do to deserve it? I wish I knew, but that's the way it is and it's always goin' to be like this. That's why I need Ranger back; with 'im around, I'd always have someone to have my back in this cruel world which hates uruks."  
Talion listened in silence, taken aback by what he'd just heard. The last thing he'd expected to hear in Mordor, much less from an orc, had just been told to him. _How can such a bloodthirsty creature as an orc hide such…tenderness?_ he thought, even as Ratbag shook himself and looked up at him.  
"Ranger, I'm a bit tired, what with the long hike today; ya' mind if I get a few hours o' shuteye?"  
Shaking himself free of distracting thoughts, Talion replied , "Go ahead and sleep through. I'll keep watch. You've been pushing yourself hard; you need to keep your strength up." he added hesitantly. Ratbag looked at him for a moment and then mumbling a thanks, he laid himself beside the fire in a curled ball, his back towards it and fell silent. Talion sat by, looking at him for a long time after and then turning his gaze to the fire. The short conversation he'd had with Ratbag shook him; for the first time, he understood the terrible curse that an orc had to bear from it's first breath to it's last in it's uncertain life. Men were born free and remained so unless they fell into the Shadow; an orc was ruled till it's last hour by it. Why indeed had fate cursed them to be that way?

He was so lost in thought that he started as a voice spoke to him out of the darkness, the sole illumination being the fire pit. The wraith of Celebrimbor stood behind him, looking out into the blackness, lost in thought.  
"Long ago before the First Age, after the Eldar awoke under the stars, Morgoth, the Black Enemy of Arda, had enslaved some of the elves and broken and twisted their hröar and fëar, turning them into what later became the uruks. From the embodiment of grace, they turned into despicable and ugly brutes, corrupted with poison and dark magic. Sauron too had his role to play; the devices of torture that went into making the first orcs were crafted by his hand. Annatar, _Lord of Gifts_ indeed" he said is a tone filled with disgust.

Talion spoke, his mind troubled, "The same could have happened to men."

"Morgoth did seduce the Atani into worshipping him, but some saw through the lie and rose against him. They became the Edain, who were given the Island of Numenor to inhabit after Morgoth was defeated as a gift, only to fall prey to the evil of his servant later and to form their kingdoms in Middle-Earth in exile after Numenor was lost beneath the waves" he answered. "Orcs still do retain a shadow of what the Eldar once possessed, mangled and corrupted as it may be. Bear that in mind, Talion; they are not what they are by choice."  
He faded away, leaving to Talion alone to fight off the shadows of the night and of the mind in the darkness, with Ratbag fast asleep.

Bruz lay before him sniveling, "I never wanted the fort! I NEVER wanted the fort!" The olog was sobbing like a child, except in his case, his mind was broken. Ratbag and Ranger stood nearby, staring in shock at the treacherous overlord, stunned to see how the once brash and brutish troll had been reduced to a blubbering mess. Ratbag murmured to Ranger, asking him to leave, mentioning how it gave him the creeps to look at Bruz before slinking away. Ranger tarried a moment before declaring in the Common tongue, "You're a cruel one, Gravewalker" before lumbering away. Talion continued to stare at Bruz, quite astounded at the effect shaming the olog had had. Gradually, he remembered about Ratbag; the night by the fire-pit, the conversation he had, the realization and Celebrimbor's revelation. This was possibly the last time he would ever see Ratbag, being sure that he and Ranger were leaving Mordor and the war behind for the lands to the East. And then he remembered the knife.

Turning around on his heel, he ran after the pair and called out, "Ratbag!" The orc turned and enquired, puzzled "Ranger?" as Talion came to a stop.  
"Ratbag, there's a parting gift I have for you", he said as he pulled out a knife of Gondorian make from his belt, harkening back to the last days of the Second Age. "A token of appreciation for all you've done for me."

Ratbag took it, silent as a grave, turning the blade over and over in his hands.  
"This was Ushnâk's knife."

Talion was stunned. "I got it off a dead orc."

Ratbag gurgled, his voice thick, eyes still on the knife. "This was won by one of our ancestors over a thousand years ago. Been passed down for generation, it has. Ushnâk got it after 'is first kill. I don't know how it ended up with that uruk you took it off but you gave me a part of my blood brother back" he said, looking up, and it seemed his eyes were moist. Could it be _…tears?_ thought Talion, but was unable to confirm his suspicions because Ratbag blinked and his face was as it was before again. Still, with a voice that sounded choked, the orc continued solemnly, "You put a smile on the ghost of my brother, Ranger, and got me my best friend back. No Man's ever done so much for uruks as you have. Most would just try to kill us before asking questions."

Talion smiled, "It occurred to me the first time I met you."

The orc bellowed with laughter, "Well, you'd be daft to trust every thieving piece of shrakh uruk in Mordor." Then, growing sober again, he said, "Thank you for all you've done for us, Bright Lord."

"Talion" he answered softly.

A spasm of enigmatic emotion contorted the uruk's face and he said, "Thank you for all the help you've given us, Talion. We'll never forget it as long as we live."

"And I'll always remember you and the help you gave me, Ratbag, for without you, I would have never had my revenge against Sauron's Black Captains" Talion replied gravely.

Ratbag nodded, "I hope you succeed in your mission in Mordor, Gravewalker."

"And I hope you and Ranger succeed in life, however you intend to lead it."

Ratbag grunted, and then raised the knife in salute. "Farewell, Ranger."

"Farewell, Overlord Ratbag" he answered in the softest tone he'd ever used for an orc, "and Ranger", who inclined his head respectfully. "Go in peace and friendship." Ranger's face softened perceivably at this and a genuine smile played across Ratbag's face and he nodded, before they turned and walked away, parting with Talion for the last time.


End file.
